1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to keyboards, wherein users can directly adjust the character output parameters therefrom.
2. Description of the Related Art
Keyboards are usually designed so that when a user continually presses a key, the keyboard firstly outputs the character of the key once, then pauses for a while, and then repeatedly outputs the same character for several times until the user releases the key. The pause period is the so-called “repeat delay”, and the speed for repeatedly outputting the character is the so-called “repeat rate”.
The values of the repeat delay and repeat rate vary from keyboard to keyboard. When using a keyboard for word processing, it is easy for users to output extra characters if the repeat delay is too short. In short, a short repeat delay causes trouble when typing. When using a keyboard for playing computer games, it is easy for users to lose games if the repeat delay is too long or if the repeat rate is too slow. In short, a long repeat delay or a slow repeat rate limits operational agility. Therefore, the repeat delay and the repeat rate should be adjustable for an idea keyboard.
In the prior art, users can only change the repeat delay and the repeat rate for a keyboard through the operating system (OS). For the Windows OS, the user must first open the “Control Panel” and click the option “Keyboard” before modifying the repeat delay and the repeat rate (the repeat delay is usually modified to be between 250 ms and 1 s; and the repeat rate is usually modified to be between 2 characters per second and 30 characters per second). This manner is applicable for PS/2 keyboards and USB keyboards.
However, it is much more convenient to change the setting directly via the keyboard rather than via the OS. Meanwhile, a USB keyboard is different from a PS/2 keyboard, and the repeat delay and repeat rate for both depend upon the polling rate of the processor of the computer and can only be adjusted through the OS. Settings can be changed directly via PS/2 keyboards, but not USB keyboards at this time. A USB keyboard allowing for settings to be changed therethrough is desired.